The 13th Hour
The 13th Hour is the name given to the 13 more dangerous, dire, and feared assassins in the Eastern Dynasty. Though they normally operated indpendently of each other, they were called to act as a single unified group by Damiyo Gaisuke, when he correctly surmised that the Blades of Paradigm were the heroes spoken of in the prophecy. Each of the assassins in the Hour are known all across the continent of Paradigm, and each is greatly feared for good reason: Unlike most assassins, the Hour does not stop if they fail to murder their target the first time. These men and women have brought down people from all walks of life from simple farmers to heads of state, and each one leaves a distinct calling card which only serves to heighten their legend and status. The Living Assassins These ten individuals remain at large and continue to hunt for the Blades. Hasuko Maru - One of the most frightening and wierdest of the Hours. Maru is the de facto leader of the Hours, the first assassin to be hand picked for the assignment to destroy the Blades of Paradigm by the Damiyo. Maru appears as a clown, wearing a white outfit with red highlights. His face is painted completely white, with a bright blue star tattoo under his left eye and a bright blue teardrop tattoo under his right eye. His hair is dyed shocking pink. Maru is believed to be the singular greatest Enchanter currently alive in the Dynasty and as a master of illusion, misdirection, and befuddlement Hasuko lives for the hunt, often toying with his enemies with a bizarre assortment of toys and game pieces for days before finally dispatching them. Hasuko Maru's name is very well known and equally as feared among the criminal underworld of Paradigm. His calling card is a red crescent moon on a white field. Shiaolyn - Unquestionable the deadliest martial artist in the ranks of the 13th Hour, Shiaolyn doesn't rely on weapons, poisons, or traps to murder her targets: she tears them apart with her bare hands. She is a master of several esotic martial arts that utilize pressure point strikes, crippling joint locks and holds, and masterful use of her personal qi to make herself a literal living weapon. Shiaolyn is but a tiny thing, not over five feet tall and wears a traditional martialists outfit in bright green, with darker green highlights. She is never seen without a veil covering her face, leading many to believe she carries a severe facial disfigurement or deformity. Her calling card is a dark green fore-knuckle fist hand position on a lighter green background. Mimari, Mistress of Toxins - Mimari hails from the northern, colder climes of the Eastern Dynasty. Her specialization is venoms, toxins, and poisons of all kinds. Not only is she considered the greatest living master of such substances in the Dynasty she has also built up an incredible resistance to each one so that she can not be brought down by any known poison. Her skills with destroying her targets with venoms are legendary: she coats weapons, laces food and drink, and has even killed her targets by applying pisons to her own body and seducing the target. An often underlooked aspect of the Mistress of Toxins is that she is also a superb hand-to-hand combatant, well versed in half a dozen martial arts and nearly two dozen weapon skills. Her calling card is the silhouete of a black window descending from a thread, with a prominent red hourglass, on a white standard. Yuhzui Song - An assassin most notable for her skills with twin broadaxes and her exemplary martial skills. Yuhzui is also a very powerful air elementalist which figures strongly in all of her attacks. Unlike many assassins Yuhzui operates by a strict code of ethics: she refuses to accept contracts which target women, children, or individuals that have a well-documented history of good works. She limits her targets only to criminals, the dangerously mentally ill, or individuals whom pose a real and viable threat to the Dynasty, like the Blades of Paradigm. Her calling card is a pair of crossed broadaxes on a light pink broken-heart standard. The Demonseed - Nobody is quite sure who, or even what, the Demonseed is. He appears as a swarthy Easterner in a yellow martial outfit of fine silk, with red highlights. His hair is long and a scorching red. The left side of his face is a horror, being a gold-scaled reptilian structure with a slitted pupil and fan-like ear. Many honestly believe that the Demonseed is half-dragon though no such thing has ever been recorded. He is an exceptionally dangerous hand to hand combatant and fire elementalist but has also learned how to channel his qi so that he can translocate at the speed of thought, allowing him to attack one foe, teleport to a second, then a third, and so on before his enemies are even aware that he's among them. It's said that Demonseed is the Damiyo's personal favorite among the 13th Hour. His calling card is a red lion upright on hind legs, breathing a plume of fire, on a black background. Ateemi Meadflower - The only agent of the 13th Hour not born in the Dynasty, this strikingly beautiful Mattimeo woman makes her home there now. Her name is very well known within the Eastern Dynasty; it is associated with destruction and mass death. Ateemi revels in collateral damage. She will destroy an entire tavern, murdering everyone within it, to ensure she gets her target. When she accepts a contract to assassinate a target, she makes a statement by also murdering her target's immediate family. She is especially well known for utilizing her prowess as a sorceress to conjure up any weapon she has need of at the moment, whicch itself inflicts devastating environmental damage. The worst news for the Blades, though? Ateemi is Perimi's baby sister. Her calling card is a wilted black rose on a white field. Minazi Okoturo - ' is a woman of legend, even outside of the Dynasty. One poetic witness to one of her attacks said of her: ''"As beautiful as the moon in the night sky and as deadly at the most virulent poison in the wine is she, Minazi. She is of elven kind, with shimmering skin like coal and hair white as spun sea foam. Beware her gaze, beware!" ''Minazi is a Spriggan elementalist with command over fire, and her weapon of choice is a blood red kusari-gama. The rumours surrounding her insist that she can turn men to stone with her gaze. Her calling card is a styled flaming red eye on a black background. '''Kokuro '- As massive and strong as the earth her commands as an elementalist, Kokuro likes to approach his target in the open, calling them out to battle and then going toe-to-toe with them with his fearsome open-hand martial art. If his target is able to defeat him in combat, Kokuro ensures that his death is quick and painless out of respect. If the target loses the fight, he is tortured over a number of days before finally being dispatched. His calling card is a grey broken rock on a green field. 'Tahimu '- The most frightening thing about Tahimu Notoboku is his acute politeness. A wandering Zealot, he preaches mutual cooperation for the betterment of all between species to all that will stand and listen. He is quite notable that he always, without fail, apologizes to his target for taking the life, then dispatches them quicly with a qi infused longsword that can cut through any known substance. His calling card is a black open palm with a red teardrop in the denter of the palm, on a maroon field. '''Zofuni Mitsura the Blade - Zofuni Mitsura is considered by the majority of his peers to be the finest samurai to walks the breadth of the Eastern Dynasty in 400 years. A true man of honour, The Blade refuses to accept targets that are women or children, attack from ambush or by surprise, or fail to keep his word. He always gives his targets a fighting chance and has promised that should any target survive a battle with him he will hunt them no longer. So far, none of his targets have lived. He fights with a pair of razor sharp swords and his qi is so attuned the weapons are a true extension of himself rather than mere tools. His symbol is a trio of orange falling leaves on a light blue field. The Dead Assassins These assassins have caught up with the Blades and as a result lost the fight and their lives to the prophetic heroes. Golden Crescent - A master of warfare with twin fire wheels as his primary weapon. He was killed by the Blades in the city of Watership. Whip Chain - Whip Chain was the sister and partner of Golden Crescent. Like her brother, she was killed by the Blades in the city of Watership.